This invention relates to a process and apparatus for continuously manufacturing a synthetic resin hose having a tubular reinforcing member embedded therein, wherein the reinforcing tubular member consists of a warp tubular member and a braided member, the warp tubular member being formed by a plurality of warps applied with a bonding agent and arranged circularly in cross section, and the braided member being formed by braiding yarns woven in overlying fashion on the outer peripheral surface of the warp tubular member, the warps and braided yarns being bonded together at the contacts therebetween, whereby a synthetic resin hose having a highly improved quality is continuously obtained.
A synthetic resin hose having a tubular reinforcing member embedded therein has heretofore been prepared by maintaining the reinforcing member woven or braided beforehand in a tubular shape by various means and by coating synthetic resin onto the inner and outer peripheral surfaces of the prefabricated tubular reinforcing member. With such a process, a weaving or braiding step must be provided separately; and a reinforcing member must be prepared at a given length in advance as well as manufactured one by one, thus resulting in the failure of producing standardized products having a constant quality which meet the industrial standard, as well as resulting in poor economy. For the realization of the continuous manufacture of such a synthetic resin hose having an embedded reinforcing member, a process has recently been proposed by Japanese laid-open Patent Publication No. 126,774,175, wherein braiding yarns are woven into a tubular shape continuously on a mandrel; the layer of braid thus formed is maintained in the tubular shape by core yarns (warps) which are filled in meshes between woven yarns and maintained tightly in its weaving direction; and then synthetic resin is continuously coated onto the tubular woven member. A difficulty confronts with such a process that the number of warps cannot be determined independent of the number of braiding yarns, but usually must be less than one-half of the total numbers of braiding yarns, leading to the impossibility of formation of a reinforcing member having a right circular cross section. Another drawback is that, due to friction of tight warps relative to woven yarns which occurs at the time of filling warps in the woven yarns, non-uniformity in tension of braiding yarns is caused, with a likelihood of causing irregularity in meshes of woven yarns as well as break of yarns.
An object of the present invention is to provide a process for continuously manufacturing a long hose having an embedded reinforcing member, which is highly stabilized in size, with the freedom of the above-described drawbacks. To attain the object according to the present invention, there is provided a process for continuously manufacturing a synthetic resin hose having a reinforcing member embedded therein, which comprises the steps of; forming a reinforcing member consisting of a warp tubular member and a braided member, the warp tubular member being formed by guiding a plurality of bonding-agent applied warps via circularly provided yarn guide holes to the outer peripheral surface of a hollow cylindrical member and drawn lengthwise of a hose to be formed, and the braid member being formed by weaving a plurality of braiding yarns around the outer periphery of the warp tubular member; heating the reinforcing member for the bonding of warps to braiding yarns at the contacts therebetween, thereby heat-setting the reinforcing member; cooling the heat-set reinforcing member and guiding the same to a synthetic resin applying unit for coating synthetic resin onto the inner and outer surfaces of the tubular reinforcing member; heating the resin-coated reinforcing tubular member for gelatinizing the synthetic resin; and drawing and taking up a composite tubular member while cooling the same.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus embodying the above-described process which comprises; a hollow cylindrical member having diameter adjusting discs provided with a number of yarn guide holes, respectively, for guiding a plurality of warps, to which a bonding agent has been applied, to the outer peripheral surface of the hollow cylindrical member, and an adjusting disc for guiding braiding yarns, the hollow cylindrical member guiding the plurality of warps in the longitudinal axial direction thereof, thereby forming a warp tubular member; a braiding machine disposed around the hollow cylindrical member and weaving braiding yarns into a braid member on the outer peripheral surface of the warp tubular member; a first heating unit surrounding the hollow cylindrical member and heating the reinforcing member consisting of the warp tubular member and braid member for the bonding yarns of these members at the contacts therebetween, thereby heat-setting the reinforcing member; a resin applying unit including manifolds and a die for coating synthetic resin to the inner and outer peripheral surfaces of the reinforcing tubular member; a second heating unit for gelatinizing synthetic resin coated onto the reinforcing tubular member; and a cooling unit for cooling the hose thus molded, the aforesaid members and units being disposed in the order described succeedingly from below of the apparatus.
These and other objects and features of the present invention will be apparent from the ensuing part of the specification in conjunction with drawings which indicate preferred embodiments of the invention.